My Enigmatic Life

   Just as planned, Akane and I met after-school for our date. I suffered through a whole year's worth of teasing from my friends, but I don't care. I made a promise and I plan to keep it. 

"So, where do you want to go, Akane?", I ask.

"Wherever is fine. I just want to spend sometime with you after all."

She's rather upfront this afternoon, isn't she? Well, seeing as my monthly allowance hasn't come in yet, I really don't have much money to spare. Should I have gone to the bank first?

"How about the aquarium?"

"Sounds good to me!", Akane beams.

Right, she seems to have liked my suggestion. Hopefully, I don't bore her talking about starfish or something like that. 

  The aquarium is unsurprisingly vacant. That's not anything to note, seeing as how it's a school day. Akane closely watches an eagle ray sailing through the water.

"Look, Senpai! It's really big, isn't it?!"

She points at it excitedly, her eyes a-light. I can't help but smile broadly at her.

"You think he's big? I saw one with Sunni back home in the UK that was even bigger."

"Really? That's amazing!"

"Yeah, we had a whole lotta fun that day." , I say retrospectively. 

Suddenly, me going on this date with Akane makes me feel a sense of contrition. Akane realises this and blinks at me. 

"Is something wrong, Senpai?"

"Ah, I was just wondering why you're always wearing that hair-band?"

Akane blushes a little, seemingly becoming shy.

"I-it's because you gave it to me."

Really? That's an unexpected answer. I did get it for her a some time ago, but is that why she dons it so religiously? Even when she goes to sleep?

"I'm sure that you can recall it being taken away from me was the first time that happened.", she murmurs. 

Well, I doubt that I could ever forget that day... But hearing her say that really starts to make me wonder about Akane's feelings for me. Are they the same as Yoko's? They can't be, right? Right? 

  For lunch, we decided to stop at a ramen shop. 

"Welcome!"

I order a large size shoyu broth ramen for myself, and regular size miso broth ramen for Akane. 

"Thanks for the food."

I start by drinking up some of the broth, it's rich and savoury. Ramen truly is one of my favourite staples in Japanese cuisine. 

"Senpai, can you walk me home instead of taking the bus?"

I slurp up the noodles dangling from my mouth and swallow them.

"Are you sure? It'll be a long walk, you know."

She nods repeatedly. 

"I-I want to spend as much time alone with you as possible."

Once again, her honesty is a little jarring. Suddenly, I'm feeling a bit meek.

"If you say so..." , I say nervously. 

We leave the ramen shop and make our way home. We chat amongst ourselves along the way, but I could swear that someone was tailing us. I took multiple detours, just to be certain, and they were still following us.

"Akane. Hide."

"But what about you?"

"Just go, alright?", I demand.

Akane hesitates, but she finally follows my instructions. The hooded figure catches up with us.

"So, you knew that I was following you, eh? Impressive."

"What is it that you want?", I say quickly. 

The stalker sneers at me.

"Impatient, aren't we? Well, if you insist."

He pulls out a switch-blade and points it at me. A thief, perhaps?

"Master Shade sent me out to spy on you. He said that depending on what I see, I can either kidnap you and bring you along with me or kill you right here."

Master Shade? Who the hell is that?

"I don't suppose you would be so kind as to let me off easy, will you?", I ask sarcastically. 

The hooded bloke lunges at me with his blade, swinging at me hungrily. So much for mercy. Luckily for me, this bloke isn't too good at his job. I sweep his feet, causing him to face-plant in the dirt.

"You son of a-"

I cut his words off with a punch to his jaw, knocking him to the ground again. Unfortunately, there's no one around this place, it's basically abandoned. So I can't just go looking for the police. 

"Shit. You are actually tough. I'm not like that bastard Saito."

Saito? The plonker is affiliated with Saito?

The bloke raises his hand up, and holds it there. What, is he trying to show off his ring........wha....?

"What's... happening..?"

Suddenly, I'm feeling an overwhelming evidence sense of drowsiness... 

"Hah! I... Boss Ha.....lending.....ring...."

I can barely discern what he's saying... I collapse.... My eyes won't stay open.... Well, so much for the date going well.... It's seems like I'm going to die here... I'm sorry... everyone... 

  I wake-up with blurry vision and a soft sensation on the side of my face. Where am I? As I slowly regain my senses, I can see that I'm still in the abandoned area. That's strange. Didn't that guy say he would either abduct or murder me?

"You've woken up! What a relief!"

Akane? Why is she here? And why does her voice sound slightly different? I unsteadily rise to my feet.

"What are doing here, Aka...ne??"

My words tail off as I turn to face her, a chill running up my spine. 

"Of course I would be here. Where else would I go, Daisuke-nii?"

Akane's stood there, looking at me with her brilliant, piercing red eyes. In her left hand she carries a metal pipe that's drenched in blood, and on her blood-stained face she wears an unnaturally large smile. It's- it's the Red Spirit Power... 

"You should know better than to think that I would actually leave you behind.", Akane giggles.

I don't understand. Akane is definitely in RSP mode now, but she's talking? Once it's activated, the user becomes a mute, emotionless machine. But this isn't what I'm seeing here, if anything she's especially expressive.

"Akane? Is that you?" , I ask with trepidation.

Akane giggles even more than she did aforehand. 

"Obviously! You still must be a bit dazed, Daisuke-nii."

Daisuke....nii? I thought that she stopped calling me that, but it seems like I was wrong. What's happening? Why does she have blood on her person? Where's the bloke who was trying to off me?

"Where did the suspicious guy with the hoodie go?", I ask, trying to calm myself down.

"Oh, that disgusting worm? It's back there."

Akane's smile didn't falter as she used such demeaning vocabulary. Tentatively, I walk down to where she gestured, and look around the corner... 

"Gah! Ruddy hell!"

The poor sod's head is practically gone! Nothing but viscera! To say he was bludgeoned to death would be very insufficient! I think that I may be a wee bit ill....

"Akane, did you do that to him..?"

To my horror, Akane nods happily. 

"Yep! I hit it in the head about eight times. Though it was so pathetically weak that it almost died from my first blow."

I subconsciously rub the side of my head. Poor bastard, he lost the fight before it ever even began.

"But why kill him? And why so brutally?"

"Why? Because it-"

"He.", I stress.

"Because he tried to kill you or take you away. And I won't ever let that happen."

Akane's wide, ear-to-ear smile remains on her face as continues.

"I'll make those who mean you harm suffer the most agonising fates imaginable if they so much as dare to do so, Daisuke-nii."

"But, why?"

I couldn't even think of anything to say other than that. My mind was just racing with thousands of thoughts at once.

"Because it's what you should do for the one who you love."

Love...? There's no way she means that. But after what I just saw, it's undeniable. 

"I love you, Daisuke-nii. I've loved you for so much for a long time."

All I can do is stare into her eyes. The eyes that I considered to be a sign of danger, are now looking upon me with a fondness I would have never, ever have expected from them.